"Oh my gosh, did you see her outfit? She should not be wearing that."
This is what you hear out of people's mouths as they intentionally body shame women. The way I look at it, America has it all wrong with the "ideal" body type. Why is the ideal body type a Victoria Secret model? Do you realize the average size for women in America is 12–14, but here you are body shaming someone in a size 6–8.
News flash: Size does not matter, and neither does the appearance of another woman. Why is size so important? If someone is comfortable with their body, then leave them alone.
Stop saying the girl with the curves has the ideal body, stop saying the skinny girl has the perfect body, and stop saying others are too fat. I'm sorry, but whatever happened to empowering women? Standing side by side against each other? Instead, we have resorted to body shaming through social media, in person, and through advertising.
Even celebrities are getting messages from people about their appearance. Amy Schumer says it best, "I meant to write ‘good morning trolls!’ I hope you find some joy in your lives today in a human interaction and not just in writing unkind things to a stranger you’ve never met who triggers something in you that makes you feel powerless and alone. This is how I look. I feel happy, I think I look strong and healthy and also like miss trunchbull from This is how I look. I feel happy, I think I look strong and healthy and also like miss trunchbull [sic] from 'Matilda.' Kisses!”. Kisses!” It is sad to see strangers commenting on the comedian's appearance when they don't even know her. People try to tear others down for their pure enjoyment.
It seems like women's bodies are always subject to some type of commentary. Everywhere I turn, people are promoting the ideal body. On magazines I constantly see on the front page, "Tips to the perfect body" or "Are you beach body ready?" Who decided what the perfect body looks like? And why do you have to have a beach body to wear a swimsuit? What is wrong with women feeling comfortable in their own skin regardless of their size? Body shaming comes in all forms. Even telling someone to gain weight is the same as telling someone to lose weight. It is all equally offensive!
We are all built differently so there shouldn't be any room for body shaming. Telling someone they are "too skinny" or "too fat" is shaming them into thinking their bodies are not good enough. We keep pressuring women to have unrealistic body types when we are all different! Stop shaming women who are too tall, short, fat, skinny, petite, flat chested—the list could go on. No one is perfect and no one is aiming to have the "perfect body."
As women. we are not just a body so why put a label on us? Women everywhere are smart, pretty, confident, and funny. Yet we categorize women by their size instead of looking at the whole picture. We all have flaws, but being a certain size or looking different shouldn't be frowned upon.
